Hubert Willis
British actor (1876-1933)

Hubert Willis (1862 – 13 December 1933) was a British actor best known for his recurring role as Doctor Watson in a series of silent Sherlock Holmes films co-starring with Eille Norwood.
Stage career
Willis appeared in the copyright performance of William Gillette's play Sherlock Holmes (1899) in an unknown role. He played Planchette and Lavrille in Never Again at the Vaudeville Theatre (1897) opposite Allan Aynesworth. Captain Welsh opposite Robert Taber in Bonnie Dundee at the Adelphi Theatre (1900); Brother Jerome in The Sacrament of Judas at the Comedy Theatre (1901); Rushey Platt, MP in Love in Idleness at Terry's Theatre (1902). Dick Snaresby in Brown at Brighton at the Avenue Theatre (1903); Mullins in the original stage production of Peter Pan at the Duke of York's Theatre (1904) opposite Gerald du Maurier as Captain Hook/Mr. Darling and Nina Boucicault as Peter Pan; Jenkins in Castles in Spain at the Royalty Theatre (1906); Dubois in The Hon'ble Phil opposite G. P. Huntley at Hicks Theatre (1908); Mr. Curry in The Test at the Court Theatre (1906). and Village Handyman in The Man with his Back to the East at the Court Theatre (1912).
Sherlock Holmes films
Willis made his first film appearance as Shelton in the silent film The House of Temperley (1913), an adaptation of Rodney Stone by Arthur Conan Doyle. Between 1921 and 1923 he played Dr.
The public source identifies “Hubert Willis” as british actor (1876-1933). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Hubert, Willis and British.
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Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Oct 1, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q5927686. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1862, 1933, 1899 and 1897.
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This entry incorporates text from “Hubert Willis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.